Ott and Heyward after the performance of Beethoven's Third Piano Concerto.
Program - The Beethoven Effect
subito con forza (2020) by Unsuk Chin (b. 1981).
Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor, Op. 37 (1800?) by Beethoven (1770-1827).
Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67 (1807) by Beethoven.
The composition date of Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 3 is a subject of debate among musicologists. It was first performed in 1803, and published in 1804.
A bit of history. When I moved to NJ in 1979 one of my colleagues at work would try to sign up people for the Mostly Mozart Festival during the summer months. Work and young children made it quite impossible to attend concerts during those years. Per entries in this blog, we went regularly starting in 2009, and did that until 2019. COVID made it impossible to attend in-person concerts during the subsequent years. In 2023 and 2024 many changes were announced for the Mostly Mozart Festival, among which were the replacement of Louis Langree by Jonathan Heyward, the renaming of the orchestra from MM Festival Orchestra to Festival Orchestra of Lincoln Center, and a new "pay what-you-want" pricing scheme for concert tickets. To make things even more confusing, things are now part of the "Lincoln Center's Summer for the City."
Inertia is such a thing that once you stop doing something, it takes energy and deliberation to restart. With the many significant changes in the "organization" (don't know what else to call it), I didn't want to bother, especially since I didn't want to "fight" (even online) for these tickets, thinking they would be popular as they can be free.
This season I did look, and found out general ticket sales started in May, so I went to the website on 5/20. Many seats were already gone (perhaps to members who donated to the program), but there were still quite a few seats available, with a "list price" of $35 per ticket. I bought tickets for three concerts.
I am glad I did, if tonight's experience was any indication.
Jonathan Heyward is quite young (early 30s), and is the Music Director of Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. After seeing him for this concert, the word that comes to mind is "dynamic." The contrast he managed to get out of the orchestra was phenomenal, and the musicians seemed to be happy to be performing under his baton. Being dynamic works very well for Beethoven, and both the Piano Concerto and the Symphony brought new excitement to and appreciation of these traditional work horses.
Ott made some variations in her tempo when she first came in; my thought was there was no need to do so with Beethoven. While I still hold that view, she put in an impressive and enjoyable performance which completely won over the audience.
Before she played her encore, she mentioned the piece "For Alina" by Arvo Part is a piece of very few notes, in contrast to Beethoven, and that it can also bring people together. (Some words to that effect, I forget after a few days.)
After intermission, the empty seat next to us was taken by someone who sat in the front for the piano concerto. He mentioned that Ott performed without shoes on. With her long dress, I didn't notice that at all.
Unsuk Chin's piece subito con forza drew inspiration from Beethoven. I didn't get the quotes.
Conclusion of a satisfying concert.
Definition of exuberance.
Per this blog, I have heard Unsuk Chin once, and it's the same piece performed tonight. It was in 2024, performed by the Rutgers Symphony Orchestra. I scratched my head after the Rutgers concert.
For this concert, the Program Notes describes how Chin was inspired by Beethoven (the title now makes some sense, perhaps even better if it's "allegro con brio.") The Notes further invites the audience to catch references to Beethoven's works (Coriolan Overture, Fifth Symphony, Emperor Concerto). I am embarrassed to say I missed all of them. So I still scratched my head even with more detailed notes.
The audience were really into it. They applauded after every movement (except between the third and fourth movements of the Symphony since there is no break). Summer concerts tend to be less formal, so I need to relax a bit.
On the other hand, this concert felt a lot more formal than the ones I used to attend. Perhaps the renovated David Geffen Hall just feels more formal than Avery Fisher Hall, or perhaps during the Mostly Mozart Festival years the stage was configured differently. I still recognize the concertmaster, the principal second violin, the principal cellist, and the principal flutist; so most of the musicians probably carry over from the pre-COVID period. (Yes, Avery Fisher was renamed by 2019, but renovation was yet to take place.)
We might even go in on an earlier train and grab dinner next time.
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